Northern Ireland: Health Trusts

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Which of the health trusts in Northern Ireland bank with the Bank of Ireland; how much was paid to the Bank of Ireland in fees and charges by health trusts in Northern Ireland in each of the past five years; and when the bank accounts of these trusts are due to be renewed.

Baroness Amos: All 19 health trusts in Northern Ireland bank with the Bank of Ireland.
	No bank fees or charges were paid to the Bank of Ireland by any health trust in any of the past five years.
	The bank accounts of these trusts are due to be renewed on 1 September 2005. There is an option in the contract with the Bank of Ireland to extend it for a further two years.

Judicial Pensions

Lord Patten: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 13 December (WA 56), whether the senior judges and judges' representative organisations stated during consultation the number of serving judges who would resign; and, if so, what was that number.

Lord Falconer of Thoroton: The responses did not indicate how many serving judges would resign, but did not suggest that it might be a substantial number.

British Citizenship: Mr Ross Brans

Lord Faulkner of Worcester: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	When they will reply to the letter from the Lord Faulkner of Worcester of 7 November to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office about the application for British citizenship by Mr Ross Brans.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: As far as I am aware, the Home Office has not received this letter. We would be most happy to reply if the noble Lord would be kind enough to forward a copy to us.

Prison Visits

Lord Williams of Elvel: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What is their response to the Lord Williams of Elvel's suggestion on 8 December (HL Deb, col. 909) that there should be a standard, included in prison audits, for the conduct of prison visits; and, if so, how they propose to introduce such a standard.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: Prison Service policy is for visits to take place in the most humane conditions possible. Prison guidelines stipulate that the duty to treat prisoners with humanity also applies to the treatment of families and other visitors, and they should be treated courteously and sensitively.
	The Prison Service has around 70 performance standards applying to all aspects of the management of prisons and prisoners, each comprising a number of measurable baselines that are audited regularly. The prisoners' family life standard currently contains 13 key audit baselines relating to social visits, including visiting arrangements and the provision of information to visitors.

Anti-Binge Drinking Advertisements

Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How much they are spending on the current round of anti-binge drinking advertisements.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The Home Office is supporting work by police and trading standards, but is not currently running any advertisements on anti-binge drinking.

Prison and Probation Services: Alcohol Misuse

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How much additional money will be provided to (a) the Prison Service and (b) the Probation Service in 2005–06 to implement the strategy of addressing alcohol misuse.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The strategy will be implemented within existing funding settlements within the Prison Service. The National Probation Directorate is developing a parallel strategy that will result in a consistent approach across the National Offender Management Service.

Prison and Probation Services: Alcohol Misuse

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will extend the assessment of prisoners on reception from the identification of immediate need for the management of alcohol withdrawal to the risk of harm from drinking, by use of the Paddington alcohol test or a similar questionnaire which can be administered briefly.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: For prisoners who are assessed as not being physically dependent on alcohol upon reception, Prison Service guidance recommends the use of the alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT), which is similar to, but fuller than, the Paddington test.

Prisons: Speech and Language Therapy

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether, following the research conducted by Professor Karen Bryan on speech and language therapy for young people in prison under the auspices of the University of Surrey in collaboration with the Prison Service, they will screen young offenders for communication problems and provide therapy where appropriate.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: We will be studying the findings of Professor Bryan's report very carefully and will then consider any action that may be appropriate.

Criminal Cases Review Commission

Earl Howe: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they consider it part of the function of the Criminal Cases Review Commission to investigate the following possibilities if brought to its attention in relation to a claim: (a) forensic evidence not presented at trial; (b) exculpatory evidence known about but not sufficiently highlighted at trial; (c) the creditability of confession evidence provided from a prison cell; (d) a mistaken direction by the trial judge; and (e) inconsistencies between evidence given at trial and evidence given at retrial.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The commission may refer a conviction, verdict or finding to a court of appeal if it considers that there is a real possibility that the conviction, verdict or finding would not be upheld if the reference were made. The commission is responsible under the Criminal Appeal Act 1995 for interpreting "real possibility", and will generally be looking for evidence not adduced, or arguments not raised, in the proceedings that led to the conviction, verdict or finding, or in any appeal or application for leave to appeal. In exceptional circumstances, the commission can refer a conviction in the absence of such evidence and arguments. The commission can only refer a sentence to a court of appeal if it considers that it would not be upheld because of an argument on a point of law, or information, not so raised.
	In the exercise of its role to investigate miscarriages of justice, it would be part of the commission's function to investigate any of the possibilities to which the noble Earl refers.

Army: Infantry Battalions

Lord Marlesford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will list all infantry battalions in the British Army, indicating in respect of each the total number of persons currently serving and how many of these are female.

Lord Bach: The infantry battalions in the British Army as at 1 November 2004 are as listed in the table below.
	Females are not enlisted into the infantry (nor the Household Cavalry or the Royal Armoured Corps), though women may serve alongside the infantry as attached personnel. Therefore, the numbers shown in the table below refer only to male serving officers and soldiers.
	
		
			  (a) Infantry personnel serving withthe battalion   (b) Battalion personnel servingoutside their battalion   Total [(a) + (b)] 
			  Officer Soldier Officer Soldier Officer Soldier 
			 GG 40 610 20 95 60 705 
			 CG 40 620 30 120 70 740 
			 SG 45 575 25 75 70 650 
			 IG 30 485 30 95 60 580 
			 WG 40 505 25 80 65 585 
			 1 RS 35 445 35 55 70 500 
			 1 RHF 30 485 35 90 65 575 
			 KOSB 30 460 40 70 70 530 
			 BW 40 505 35 65 75 570 
			 HLDRS 40 450 50 60 90 510 
			 1 A and SH 35 450 35 80 70 530 
			 1 PWRR 30 585 80 145 150 1240 
			 2 PWRR 40 510 
			 1 RRF 35 550 75 150 145 1195 
			 2 RRF 35 495 
			 1 RA 35 530 85 150 155 1195 
			 2 RA 35 515 
			 KOB 30 470 45 75 75 545 
			 K 30 510 35 40 65 550 
			 PWO 30 545 45 50 75 595 
			 GH 30 480 35 85 65 565 
			 QLR 30 535 35 85 65 620 
			 DWR 30 485 45 140 75 625 
			 D and D 35 505 40 50 75 555 
			 C 35 470 30 50 65 520 
			 RWF 40 510 50 75 90 585 
			 RRW 30 455 40 90 70 545 
			 W FR 40 465 40 60 80 525 
			 S 35 505 40 45 75 550 
			 RGBW 40 505 45 60 85 565 
			 1 LI 30 490 80 200 140 1190 
			 2 Ll 30 500 
			 1 RGJ 35 500 50 170 115 1170 
			 2 RGJ 30 500 
			 1 R I 35 465 90 70 125 535 
			 1 P 40 530 140 370 255 1905 
			 2 P 35 505 
			 3 P 40 500 
			 Battalions Total 1,320 19,215 1,485 3,040 2,815 22,255 
		
	
	The data have been rounded to the nearest five. Because of the rounding method used in all tables, the subtotals and grand total may not be the same as the constituent parts.

Freedom of Information Act 2000

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What estimate they have made of the annual cost to government departments, agencies, non-executive bodies and local authorities arising from compliance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 from 1 January 2005.

Baroness Ashton of Upholland: Current estimates of the annual cost to government departments, agencies, non-executive bodies and local authorities from the full implementation of the Freedom of Information Act on 1 January are necessarily inexact.
	The Government's analysis of international experience shows that in some other jurisdictions which have introduced FoI legislation there has been an initial surge of requests by campaigners and the media followed by a decline, and then a rise in year two in the public use of the rights. The annual cost of implementation during the first year is unlikely to provide an accurate reflection of subsequent years. Likewise, different parts of the public sector will experience varying demand according to the nature of their current business. One local authority engaged in a high profile decision in a matter of public controversy could receive a large number of requests in correspondence generated by that business. A neighbouring authority without such a controversial piece of business may receive very few requests.
	The Government have always maintained that the costs of implementing FoI should be borne from existing resources and should act as a stimulus to better decision-making and to more efficient and cost-effective records and information management. For local, police and fire authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, increases in the revenue support grant will cover the new burdens of meeting costs of FoI.

Government Departments: Art Purchases

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What works of art including paintings and sculptures, were bought or commissioned by each government department in the past two years.

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: The Government Art Collection (GAC) part of the Department for Culture, Media & Sport purchased the following works of art for its holdings during the Calendar Years 2003 and 2004:
	Government Art Collection
	Purchases January - December 2003
	
		
			  
			 "We Take More Care of You" 2003; painting by Peter Liversidge 
			 "Andy Warhol Self-Portrait with Hands Around Neck" 2002; painting/mixed media by Gavin Turk 
			 "Bird Garden with Intestinal Self-Portrait" Mixed media drawing by Samira Abbassy 
			 "Delicious Food"/"Plain White"/"Thankyou Thankyou"/"Thankyou"/"Fish and Chips"/"Purveyors of the Finest Fruit & Veg" 2002; five screenprints by Stephen Palmer, from the Portfolio "Carrier Bag Top Ten" 
			 The Management Committee of the World Wide Web Consortium (w3c)" 2000; 13 engraved glass panels by Nick Crowe 
			 "UW84DC£7" 2001; ash and aluminium sculpture by Richard Deacon 
			 "An English Lady in Winter Costume" 1640; etching by Wenceslas Hollar, from English and Foreign Costumes 
			 "Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom" 1985; screenprint by Andy Warhol, from the portfolio "Reigning Queens" 
			 "Chandelier" 2003; carbon drawing by Henry Krokatsis 
			 "Nourishment"5/37 2002; portfolio of 12 etchings by Michael Landy 
			 "River Avon Mud Drawings" 1997; six mud drawings by Richard Long 
			 "Clevedon, Blind Yeo, 16 January 2000" 2/6 2000 "Clevedon, Blind Yeo, 16 January 2000" 2/6 2000 ; diptych of C-type photographs by Jem Southam 
			 "Shakespeare from Memory"1998; 26 inkjet prints by Emma Kay 
			 "At This Stage" 19/25 2001; carborundum/relief/mixed method print by Gillian Ayres 
			 "Interior of a Mosque or Mimbar of the Great Mosque at Damascus"; painting by Frederick Leighton 
			 "Portrait of the Broke and the Bowes Families" 1740; painting by Thomas Bardwell 
			 "South Downs" 1/5 2002; colour photograph by Richard Billingham 
			 "We should also bear in mind . . . ." 18/44 2001; screenprint and Text Work by Tess Jaray, from the Portfolio "From the Rings of Saturn and Vertigo" 
			 "Red Haired Woman in the Park" 2003; painting by Chantal Joffe 
			 "Newlyn Pink" 7/50 1991; screenprint by Terry Frost 
			 "An Over-Shrugged Shoulder" 30/75 1992–3, "A Stab in the Back" 30/75 1992–3, "A Political Handshake" 30/75 1992–3, "A Nod and a Wink" 30/75 1992–3; screenprints by Bruce McLean, from the Portfolio Room Service No. 1 
			 "Untitled (A Machine for Living)" 1/5 2000; photograph by Dan Holdsworth 
			 "Afro Lunar Lovers" 184/350 2003; giclee/mixed method print by Chris Ofili 
			 "The Meal" 1/5 2003; photograph by A.K. Dolven 
			 "Lung Ch'uan Ware and Window" 17/45 1990, "Lung Ch'uan Ware and Black Lamp" 17/45; screenprints by Patrick Caulfield from the Portfolio "White Ware Prints" 
			 "Two Blues" 124/250 2003; screenprint by Bridget Riley 
			 "Other Careers that Begin with A" 16/85 2003; screenprint by Colin Lowe and Roddy Thomson 
			 "A Manchester Portfolio" 3/50 2003ortfolio of 10 works by various artists 
			 "Red China" 17/25 1966; screenprint by Michael Kidner 
			 "Madron Woodcuts 1–10" 4/35 1998; portfolio of 10 woodcuts by Terry Frost 
			 "Landscape No.662" 2003; painting by John Virtue 
			 "Circus Boy" 2003; painting by Juan Bolivar 
			 "The Young Artists" c. 1745; painting by Philippe Mercier 
			 "George Macartney (1737–1806) Earl Macartney, first British Ambassador to China"; pastel drawing by Ozias Humphrey. Purchased with accompanying illuminated certificate granting the sitter Earl Macartney and Viscount Macartney of Dervock in the peerage of Ireland, 1792. 
			 "Ladder", "Handle/Rope", "Map", "Lean", "Slide", "Platform" 2000–01; video works by John Wood and Paul Harrison 
		
	
	Purchases January - December 2004
	
		
			  
			 "Landscape No.664" 2003; painting by John Virtue 
			 "Howling like dogs, I swallowed solid air" 1/3 1998–2003; colour photograph/light box by Zarina Bhimji 
			 "Studio Paintings: Index" 1/50 2003; lithograph by Ian Whittlesea 
			 "Studio Painting: Samuel Palmer2 1996–2004; painting by Ian Whittlesea 
			 "Eucalyptus" 17/30 2003; screenprint by Claude Heath 
			 "The Great Wall of China, Splendid China, Shenzen, China 2003" 1/5, "The Pyramids and the Sphinx, Window of the World, Shenzen, China 2003" 1/3, "The Taj Mahal, Window of the World, Shenzen, China 2003" 1/3 "Westminster, Window of the World, Shenzen, China 2003" 1/3, "The Arc de Triomphe, Window of the World, Shenzen, China 2003" 1/3; colour photographs by Mandy Lee Jandrell 
			 "Black Dahlias" 37/45 2002; portfolio of 12 screenprints by Paul Morrison 
			 "Water-cooled Watercress" 1990; screenprint by Ian Hamilton Finlay 
			 "Scenes from the Passion: Valentine's Day" 2004; painting by George Shaw 
			 "White Ice" 21/30 2002 "Black Ice" 21/30 2002; etchings by Anya Gallaccio 
			 "Rescued Rhododendrons 1–5"; five colour photographs by Simon Starling 
			 "Folio" 5/40 2004; portfolio of 12 screenprints by Michael Craig-Martin 
			 "Folio" 15/40 2004; portfolio of 12 screenprints by Michael Craig-Martin 
			 "Rio de Janeiro"; coloured engraving after L. Scott, from Payne's Universum or Pictorial World (London, 1847) 
			 "Rio de Janeiro"; colour lithograph after Robert Elwes, from A Sketcher's Tour round the World (London, 1854) 
			 "View of St. Salvador, a City of South America"; coloured engraving by J K Sherwin, from Millar's Complete and Universal System of Geography (London, 1782) 
			 "Untitled" 12/100; etching by James Ireland 
			 "Chance and Order 4 (Green)" 1970; painting by Kenneth Martin 
			 "Ben Nevis on Blue" 2004; painting by Claude Heath 
			 "Map of an Englishman" 39/50 2004; etching by Grayson Perry  
		
	
	The GAC commissioned no works of art from its own funds during this period, but has worked with the Home Office in commissioning a number of works of art for its new headquarters building in London (due to open in early 2005); and with the Regional Government Office for the East of England in commissioning seven photographs for its new building in Cambridge (opened 2003).
	Specific details of other works of art bought or commissioned by government departments without the assistance of the GAC should be available from the individual departments. This information is not held centrally.

Government Departments: 0870 Telephone Numbers

The Earl of Northesk: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What financial contribution, on a case-by-case basis, the use of 0870 telephone numbers makes to the budgets of government departments and agencies.

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: This information is not held centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Government Departments:Travel Expenditure

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How much each government department spent on travel for its staff in the past two financial years, broken down by each method of transport.

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: There is no centrally held record of expenditure on staff travel either by department or by mode of transport.

Euro-Zone

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord McIntosh of Haringey on 3 November (WA 33), how many United Kingdom jobs are dependent on United Kingdom trade with countries outside the European Union; and upon what data their estimate is based.

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: H M Treasury estimates suggest that around 3 million jobs are linked to UK trade with countries outside the European Union. This figure is calculated on the same basis as previous estimates of how many UK jobs are linked to trade with the EU. The analysis uses ONS data of exports of goods and services to the non-EU, GDP in market prices, UK workforce jobs, compensation of employees, and UK input-output analytical tables.

Bank of England: Gold Sales

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How much the 395 tonnes of gold sold by the Bank of England between 1999 and 2001 would raise if sold at the current price of gold as at 20 December.

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: Attempting to sell 395 tonnes of gold over a short period of time would significantly distort the market price so it is not possible to give a meaningful estimate of what such a sale would raise. However, hypothetically, using the closing gold spot price on 20 December 2004 of 441.89 dollars per ounce, the value of 395 tonnes (32,105.747 ounces = tonne) would be 5.6 billion dollars or around £2.9 billion.

Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline Project

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD), in considering whether to grant cover for contracts forming part of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline project, investigated whether the project complied with local law as defined by the host government agreements for the project; whether the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development guidelines on multinational enterprises formed part of the legal regime for the project; and whether the guidelines fell within the main criteria applied by the ECGD in making its assessment of the project.

Lord Sainsbury of Turville: ECGD carried out a full and thorough due diligence on all local law aspects in respect of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline project.
	The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) guidelines on multinational enterprises did not form part of the local legal regime for the project. However, BTC Co is contractually committed to complying with the guidelines.
	The OECD guidelines on multinational enterprises were not amongst the main criteria applied by ECGD in making its assessment of the BTC project. However ECGD reached its decision to provide cover only after a very thorough appraisal of all aspects of the project, including the environmental, social and human rights impacts.

National Alcohol Strategy

Lord Chadlington: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What funds are being made available for the implementation of the national alcohol strategy.

Lord Warner: Primary care trusts are responsible for providing their populations with healthcare and deciding how to configure local services to meet the needs of local residents. Overall expenditure plans for the National Health Service indicate an average annual increase of 7.3 per cent. in real terms between 2002-03 and 2007-08, a total increase of 42 per cent. in real terms over the period.

Disabled Persons' Parking Bays

Lord Harrison: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What financial and non-financial support is available to schemes which help prevent misuse of designated disabled parking spaces by able bodied drivers.

Lord Davies of Oldham: The Government have offered their support to Baywatch, a coalition of the major supermarkets and disability organisations (including the Disabled Drivers' Association and the Disabled Drivers' Motoring Club), who are committed to encouraging more protection of disabled persons' parking bays in retail car parks from abuse by non-disabled drivers. The Department for Transport has provided funding for the campaign's recent initiative to raise awareness of disabled persons' parking bays in supermarket car parks. Officials have worked closely with representatives of the campaign and are considering a report on the initiative before discussing with them how best to take it forward.
	In respect of the blue badge scheme of parking concessions for disabled people there are a wide variety of powers available to local authorities, who are responsible for administering the scheme, to tackle misuse of disabled persons' parking spaces and abuse of the badge itself.
	In respect of disabled persons parking bays:
	it is an offence under Section 47 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 to park a vehicle which is not displaying a badge in a designated disabled persons' parking bay.
	In terms of the badge:
	it is an offence under Section 117 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 for the badge itself to be misused by a non-disabled person, the maximum fine on conviction being £1,000;
	local authorities have powers to withdraw a badge if the holder constantly misuses it or allows it to be misused by others.
	The issues of misuse and abuse of badges were considered during a recent comprehensive review of the scheme, which concluded with 47 recommendations (including a number of enforcement measures) from DfT's statutory advisers, the Disabled Persons' Transport Advisory Committee. The majority of the recommendations have been accepted by the Government and are being taken forward. The enforcement measures include an important power for the police, traffic wardens and local authority parking enforcement officers to inspect badges to check details and the photograph of the badge holder. Additionally, consideration is being given to the feasibility of establishing a national database of badge holders.
	Provision for a power to inspect badges was included in the Traffic Management Act 2004. It will be implemented by commencement order this year. This will allow time for guidance to be prepared and issued to those who will be using the power. It has always been the Government's intention to implement all the changes at the earliest opportunity.

Newcastle International Airport

Baroness Howe of Idlicote: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Where the waste from domestic and freight flights to Newcastle Airport was disposed of prior to February 2001; and where it is disposed of currently.

Lord Davies of Oldham: I understand from Newcastle International Airport that its waste management contractors dispose of general waste from incoming aircraft at a number of landfill sites. For the period from May 1999 to May 2004 these included St Bedes, Holystone and Brenkley, but most such material currently goes to Houghton Quarry. Waste material from aircraft lavatories is disposed of via the foul sewer.

Newcastle International Airport

Baroness Howe of Idlicote: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether there were any direct passenger or freight flights to the United Kingdom from South Africa via Newcastle Airport between January 2000 and February 2001.

Lord Davies of Oldham: The Department for Transport is not aware of any direct passenger or freight flights between South Africa and Newcastle Airport since January 2000.